Synapse Audio Software Virtual Instruments

The DrumRack was designed for quick and easy programming, and comes with a simple step sequencer built into it's interface. Up to 18 drum tracks with individual single WAV file loaded onto it. LM4 Kits can be imported, including multisample information (e.g. velocity layers). Orion's preset management system makes it easy to load and save your Drums Generator configurations as drum kits - you can use this feature to quickly try out your rhythm patterns on different drum kits. The DrumRack allows to specify the root key for each track and is thus fully General MIDI (GM) compatible. You can also use the step sequencer mode to program per-step parameter changes.

Sampler

High-Quality Sampler supporting many audio formats

Orion's Sampler is the key tool when working with sample content. Many common formats, such as SoundFont (SF2), Kurzweil (K2000), Akai S5000/S6000, as well as WAV/AIFF are supported. The Sampler comes with an integrated Groove Slicer, making it easy to cut up and rearrange drumloops and sampled grooves from mono and stereo wave files. REX files can be loaded, too. There is a fully featured Program Editor supporting up to 32 layers, an unlimited number of keymaps per layer, and velocity layers.

Pro-9

Virtual-analog drum machine of highest quality

The Pro-9 is an emulation of a vintage classic. Unlike most drum machines, the Pro-9 is not sample-based, but offers virtual-analog modelling of a breathtaking quality and accuracy. Each drum sound has new parameters not available in the original hardware. The bass drum gains four additional sound parameters, for instance. The user interface comprises controls for each drum sound, as well as a classic drum machine step sequencer, for quick and easy pattern programming. There is a total of 11 sounds that can be synthesized, including Bass Drum, Snare, Toms, Clap, Rimshot, Hihats and Cymbals. The step sequencer seamlessly integrates with Orion's piano roll allowing you to fine control the velocity or position of notes. Furthermore, advanced sequencing features such as Shuffle can be applied.

Tomcat

Drum Sound Synthesizer

The Tomcat is a monophonic synthesizer designed for production of a wide range of electronic drum sounds, including bass drums, toms, claps, snares, effects and rim sounds of all sorts. When creating percussive sounds, the attack is especially important, and with the Tomcat's special parameters for attack control, you can switch between five different types of attack models. Tomcat also has a simple step sequencer built in, enabling you to quickly program a simple pattern for you drum. Additionally, it integrates with the Orion's sequencer, allowing you to create intricate drum patterns, by adjusting the velocity and pitch of each individual beat.

Wasp

Evolution of the legendary TS-404 synthesizer

The Wasp is a 3-oscillator synth with 2 LFOs and 2 ADSR envelopes and a modulation envelope, a ringmodulator, FM, PWM and a distortion unit. The first oscillator additionally has a special FAT control, which creates a richer spectrum and is good for pad or lead sounds. The Wasp models a good deal of the quirks from a seasoned analogue synthesizer, giving the sounds a very distinct character that you won't find in most other software synthesizers. The hypersaw and hypersquare oscillators offers the typical fat leads and pads often heard in modern trance music. The two great LFOs controls most important controls in Wasp: oscillator's pitches, filter cutoff frequency, pulse with, oscillator's mix and an output amplitude. Of course there couldn't be missed excellent filter unit, including 24 dB low-pass filter, 12 dB low-pass + notch cascade filter, double notch-filter, 24 dB band-pass filter and 24 dB high-pass filter.

Toxic

The next step in FM technology

Toxic is a 6-operator-FM synthesizer of highest quality. All controls are interpolated, allowing to tweak all parameters smoothly in realtime without clicks. Toxic's envelope generators are based on complex spline interpolation algorithms that were painstakingly coded to make them extremely precise and smooth. The oscillators coded into Toxic are completely alias-free over the entire spectrum range and well tuned for all sampling rates. There are 47 waveforms to choose from, including classic shapes as well as some unclassified waveforms that are rich in harmonics. Toxic comes loaded with 4 effect modules: distortion, a 6-band equalizer and two delay modules which allow the user to produce several types of effects - from chorus and flanging to delay and reverb. The effect modules effectively recreate analog effects resulting in warm sound.

Monobass

The classy sound of the original bassline

The Monobass is a single oscillator monosynth with a Lowpass filter which provides an accurate simulation of a vintage analogue bass synthesizer, the Roland TB-303. It integrates seamlessly with Orion's sequencer, allowing for easy step-based programming with accent and slide switches per step, making it easy to program the kind of complex acid patterns you hear in classic techno music.

Screamer

Breathe life into any genre of electronica

The Screamer is a two-oscillator monophonic synthesizer, inspired by vintage hardware like e.g. the MS-20, and other analog devices. It features a saturation circuitry, a 12/24 dB lowpass filter and supports accent/slide. The Screamer sounds quite different from all other synths in Orion. It models a limited set of sounds, mostly rough, saturated to distorted kinds of analog sounds. Screamer's special is also toggle between MIDI and GATE mode. MIDI mode is the normal mode of operation, used when you want to play notes of arbitrary length or play sequences via MIDI input devices. In GATE mode the note lengths are fixed to a fraction of 16th notes, which can lead to interesting results when used in conjunction with the accent and slide functions. There is also lowpass filter, which can be toggled between 12dB and 24dB slope.

Plucked String

Physically modelled plucked string sounds

The Plucked String is a physical modelling string instrument with a warm and pleasant sound, which includes five different string models. The type of sounds range from fuzzy, metallic guitar strings, over smooth nylon strings, to big and fat floorbass. It is also capable of more imaginative sounds with less resamblance to any real-world instruments. The Plucked String generator attempts to emulate the behavior of a plucked string instrument, such as a guitar. The result may be far from accurate to a real guitar, but the sound is never the less very rich and characteristic. This type of sound may be useful in many genres of electronic music - especially in combination with effects, which help bring out the rich but subtle harmonics.

Acoustic Grand Piano

Piano Module powerered by Yellow Tools

The user interface offers three controls to shape the sound. The brightness control, which adjusts the velocity-dependent brightness of the piano tone. The release parameter controls how quickly a note fades out, after a key has been released. Needless to say, the sustain pedal is supported as well. Finally, a high-quality chorus effect can be applied to the sound if desired. The lossless compression employed reduces the sample data to less than 40 mb. This means that the piano opens practically immediately, does not need to access harddisk during operation, and uses little memory.

WaveFusion

Wavetable synthesizer with three oscillators

With the WaveFusion, you've got a purely digital synthesizer, with no attempts to model anything analogue in particular. The sounds created by this generator, are not particularly dominant or characteristic, like those you would get from an analogue synth, which makes them most useful as subtle background chords, arps and atmospheres. With three wavetable oscillators, and three LFO modulation sources, there is plenty of possibilites for exploring strange new sounds. There are also filter and amplitude envelopes, and a simplified pitch modulation envelope. Please notice that wavetable synthesis is often mistaken for sampling technology, but for this generator, a wavetable is a set of short, periodic waveforms that can be blended in realtime.

Ultran

A unique blend of sample-based oscillators, and virtual-analog filters

The Ultran is a highly sophisticated sample-based synthesizer, but with powerful morphing features. Morphing, in the case of the Ultran, means that many of it's sounds are not just one static sound, but go through many stages of change, for as long as you hold down the keys - it may also respond drastically to key velocity. The morphing features make it essential for huge stereo pads and ambient textures. It is exclusively featured in Orion and comes with a vast selection of presets and samples to get you started - and many of these presets will make great starting points for designing your own soundscapes.

MidiOut module

Take control of your outboard MIDI gear

The MIDI Out generator fully integrates with Orion's sequencer, playlist, and automation system, so you can work with your external MIDI gear in the same manner you work with the internal generators. Common controls, such as volume, pitch and panning, is directly controllable via 4 knobs, that can also be automated. Additionally, there are four freely assignable MIDI controllers, which of course may also be full automated. All devices triggered by the MIDI generator receive MIDI start/stop/clock automatically.

Plugin support

When you need additional instruments or effects

Orion provides full native support for all major VST and DX plugins, both instruments and effects. Effect plugins fully integrate with the entire system, and using them is identical to using internal effects - controls can be automated, and plug-in effects can be assigned freely as inserts, sends or master effects. The integration with instrument plugins is completely seamless - sequencing, mixing, automation and effects processing all work exactly the same as with any of Orion's internal synthesizers. You will also find an another exciting new feature for VST instruments - Preset Genetics. Using two presets of your choice, or two random presets, this feature breeds new presets - it's a fun and easy new way to explore all the possibilities of your VST instruments.

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